Mining machine with adjustable boring head having thrust transmitting means



Aug. 7, 1956 MINING MACHINE Filed Dec. 18, 1953 F CARTLIDGE HAVING THRUST TRANSMITTING MEANS WITH ADJUSTABLE BORING HEAD '5 Sheets-Sheet l IN VEN TOR.

Frank Cartlidge VJMZ4M TO RN EY Aug. 1956 F. CARTLIDGE 2,757,917

MINING MACHINE WITH ADJUSTABLE BORING HEAD HAVING THRUST TRANSMITTING MEANS Filed Dec. 18. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 57 58 6| 1n 5 l .62 I 1| 65 7 i T" r 55 F S e4 5 INVENTOR.

ATTO RN EY Au 7, 1956 F CARTLIDGE MINING MACHINE WITH ADJUSTABLE BORING HEAD HAVING THRUST TRANSMITTING MEANS Filed Dec. 18, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 FIG. 5

INVENTOR.

ATTO RN EY Aug. 7, 1956 F. CARTLIDGE 2,757,917

MININgAyACHINE WITH ADJUSTABLE BORING HEAD ING THRUST TRANSMITTING M Flled Dec. 18, 1955 EANS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Frank Cartlidge ATTORN E Y Aug. '7, 1956 F. CARTLIDGE 2,757,917

MINING MACHINE WITH ADJUS LE BORING HEAD ING MEANS HAVING THRUST TRANSM 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Dec. 18, 1953 INVENTOR. Frank Cartlidge FIG. 6

% ATTORNEY United States Application December 18,1953, Serial No. 398,958

6 Claims. (Cl. 262-7) This invention relates to mining machines of the multi-bore type such as is shown in McKinley Patent No. 1,603,621 and relates particularly to an improved construction whereby the thrusts incident to the boring operation, and the thrusts incident to tilting the boring head may be taken by the gear housing for the boring arms and transmitted into the frame of the machine without imposing any strains upon the lifting cylinders which would tend to cause binding.

In such machines the action of the boring arms transmits thrusts into the gear housing, which thrusts must be transmitted into the main frame of the machine. The gear boring head is tilted in a verticalplane in order to accommodate changes in gradient of the seam and is also tilted in a plane normal to the aforesaid plane in order to compensate for the spiralling effect of the boring arms. Such movements of the boring head are ordinarily accomplished by fluid pressure means, but such thrusts against the boring head impose strains on the fluid pressure means, tending to cause binding of the piston and cylinder elements thereof.

According to the present invention, the thrust against the gear housing of the boring head is taken by pusher posts disposed inwardly of the lifting cylinders for the gear housing. These pusher posts cooperate with thrust receiving members disposed on the main frame of the machine, and the thrust receiving members may be tilted in accordance with the angle of tilt of the gear housingto compensate for the spiralling effect described, and the tilting of the gear housing in accordance with the pitch of the seam.

The tilting of the gear housing in accordance with the amount of pitch of the seam is accomplished by lifting cylinders disposed on'each side of the main frame of the machine, said cylinders having piston elements which are swivelably connected to rearward extensions from the gear housing. The operation of the boring arms tends to create minor vibrations and displacements of the rearward extending arms, and in order to maintain the rearward extending arms and the gear housing in proper location while at the same time permitting of such minor vibrations and displacements, the rearward extending arms are provided with guide posts which extend downward therefrom and which are located eccentrically of circular guides secured to the main frame of the machine. The dimensions of the back guide posts and the cooperating guides are so chosen that thereis at all times line contact of the back guide posts upon these guides. By the provision of the means just described, it is possible to take some of the transverse thrust occasioned 'by twisting of the gear housing and the boring arms in a horizontal plane.

With the foregoing considerations in mind, it is a principal object of the invention toafiord a construction for a mining machine of the type referred to whereby the thrusts incident to the operation of the boring arms will be taken by means whichare. independent of the means forlifting the boring head into. position and which are independent of the means for moving the boring head atent 2 in a vertical plane coincident with the longitudinal axis of the machine.

Other objects and important features of the invention will be apparent from a study of the following specifica= tion taken with the drawings which together describe a preferred embodiment of the invention, and what is now considered to be the best mode of practicing the princi ples thereof. Other embodiments of the invention will be suggested to those having the benefit of the teachings herein, and it is therefore intended that the scope of the invention not be limited by the precise embodiment herein shown, nor otherwise than by the terms of the subjoined claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation view of a mining machine of the multi-bore type having embodied therein the improvements according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross section through the gear housing for the boring arms shown in Fig. 1 showing details of the lifting cylinders for said gear housing and showing means for taking the lateral and endwise thrusts from the boring arms, said view being symmetrical about the center-line shown;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of the gear housingshown in Fig. 1, showing details of the gear housing tilting means, and details of the means for taking the thrust from the boring arms, said view being symmetrical about the center-line shown;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3 and looking in the direction of the arrows, certain parts being shown in elevation;

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken through one of the thrust transmitting means shown in Figs. 2 and 4, said view being taken along the plane indicated by the line 5-5 of Figs. 2 and 4 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

, Fig. 6 is an elevation view of one of the thrust transmitting members shown in Fig. 5 and said view looking laterally from the inner side thereof towardthe outside of the machine, and taken in the direction of the arrows 66 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a side elevation detail view of the thrust free connection for the lifting means of the gear housing shown in Figs. 1. and 4, said view being taken along the line 7-7 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line 88 of Fig. 4 looking in the direction showing the rear guide post and guide for the gear housing of Figs. 1 to 4 inelusive.

Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings the improvements according to the present invention are embodied in a mining machine referred to generally by the reference numeral 20. Such a machine includes a main frame 21 mounted to move upon endless crawler treads 22. The main frame 21 supports a boring head 25 consisting of a gear housing 23 having extending in a forward direc tion therefrom boring arms 24. The gear casing 23 also supports an endless cutter chain 26 which cuts the upper and lower cores left by the action of the boring arms 24.

The construction of the boring arms 24 and the endless cutter chain 26 may be that as disclosed in the application of James S. Robbins, Serial No. 345,157, filed March .27, 1953, for improvements in mining by the assignee of the present invention.

The machine 20 includes an endless chain flight conveyor 27 having a gathering head 28 which receives the cuttings from the boring arms 24 and the endless cutter chain 26. The cuttings are conveyed longitudinally of the machine 20 by the conveyor 27 whence they are discharged at a discharge boom 29 thereof. The endless conveyor 27 is driven by a fluid operated motor 31 which machines, owned drives a sprocket 32 reversing the direction of the chain flight conveyor 27. Such a discharge boom 29 may be swung in a horizontal plane by means of a swing cylinder 33, and the conveyor 27 may be raised and lowered in a vertical plane about a pivot point P, by means of lifting cylinders 34.

Power for driving the boring arms 24 and the endless cutter chain 26 is supplied by means of a motor 36 secured to the back face of the gear housing 23.

Referring now to Fig. 2 of the drawings, the gear casing 23 is raised and lowered in a vertical plane by means of lifting cylinders 37 located within the gear housing 23. A piston 38 is slidable within the cylinder 37 and terminates in a lower socket 39. A vertical load transmitting member 41 has an upper spherical surface 42 nesting within the socket 39, and a lower spherical surface 43 nesting within a mating socket held in a support 46 secured to the frame member 21. The construction thus far described for the lifting cylinder 37 and the loan transmitting member 41 insures that no twisting strains are taken by the piston 38 tending to cause same to bind within the cylinder 37.

The downward movement of the gear housing 23 upon release of pressure from the cylinders 37 is limited by a stop 30 which is engaged by a flange 35 of the cylinder 37, see Fig. 7.

The gear housing 23 and the boring arms 24 together with the endless cutter chain 26 is tilted in a vertical plane extending longitudinally of the machine 20 by means of a pair of arms 47 which extend rearwardly of the gear casing 23 and downwardly as shown. The lower and rear end 48 of the arm 47, see also Figs. 3 and 4, terminates in a clevis 49 having a pin 51 passing therethrough, to which is anchored the piston rod 52 of a tilting cylinder 53.

The tilting cylinder 53 terminates at its lower end hemispherical head 54 which nests within a mating concave gimbal 56 having trunnion pins 57 extending diametrically therefrom and at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the cylinder 53, said trunnion pins 57 being secured in mountings 58 welded to the upper surface of the frame 21. The trunnion pins 57 and the mating concave gimbal 56 are arranged to shift a slight amount laterally between the spaced mountings 58.

The provision of the described lower mountings for the tilting cylinders 53 enables them to shift slightly laterally of the longitudinal axis of the machine 20 in accordance with tilting of the gear housing 23 in a vertical plane normal to said longitudinal axis.

Referring now particularly to Figs. 4, and 6 of the drawings, the gear housing 23 has extending downwardly therefrom pusher posts 61 which are substantially square in cross section as seen in Fig. 5. Said pusher posts are spaced inward from the lifting cylinders 37 as seen in Fig. 2, and are designed to transmit both the lateral and longitudinal thrusts upon the gear housing 23 into the frame 21 as will now be described.

The lateral thrusts against the gear housing 23 and the pusher posts 61 are thus transmitted into a tilting shoe 62 arranged to tilt upon a pin 63 having its ends disposed in standards 64 and 66 extending upward from the frame 21 as seen in Figs. 4 and 5.

Longitudinal thrusts against the gear housing 23 and any forces tending to skew the gear housing 23 in a horizontal plane are transmitted by the pusher posts 61 into a rear tilting shoe 67 and a front tilting shoe 68. Rear tilting shoe 67 is mounted to swivel upon a pin 69 which is supported at one end in the vertical standard 64 and at its other end in a thrust transmitting vertical plate 71, see also Fig. 2. The front thrust receiving shoe 68 is also swivelably mounted upon a pin 72 having one end thereof received in the vertical standard 66 and the other end received in the vertical thrust transmitting plate 71.

Referring now particularly to Figs. 4 and 8 of the drawings, means are provided to take the lateral thrusts incident to the skewing of the gear housing 23 in a horizontal plane. While such thrusts are taken to their largest extent at the pusher posts 61, there is some additional slight lateral thrust to be taken at rear guide posts 81 which are received in a socket 82 extending downward from the rearward extending arms 47 and at a point a small distance forward of the point of connection of the piston rod 52 to said rearward extending arm. Said rear guide post 81 extends downward and into a generally toroidal shaped guide 83, see also Fig. 8, which is mounted at the top of a cylindrical post 84 welded at its lower end to an opening 86 in the frame 21. Said guide post 84 is also welded to a saddle 87 in turn welded at 88 to a laterally extending stiffener member 89 extending upward from the frame 21 and rearward of the guide 84 as seen in Fig. 4. Said vertical stiffener 89 also affords a support 91 for the return reach of the chain flight conveyor 27.

The axis of the guide post 81 is shown at AA while the axis of the toroidal shaped guide 83 is shown at BB as seen at Figs. 4 and 8. The guide post 81 is thus located eccentrically with respect to the toroidal shaped guide 83, and the dimension of the guide 81 is such that the guide post 81 contacts the inner periphery of the guide 83 at a point C or at other points of the periphery of the guide 83, according to the amount of skewing in a horizontal plane of the gear housing 23.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that the gear housing 23 may be raised by means of the cylinders 37 and the pistons 38 therein, the cylinder and the piston being free from any strains excepting those in the axial direction thereof through the medium of the thrust transmitting connections 41 interposed between the piston 38 and the frame 21. It will be noted that any lateral thrusts will be taken by means of the inner tilting shoes 62 which cooperate with the pusher posts 61, while any longitudinal thrusts against the gear housing 23 occasioned by the crowding action of the crawler treads 22 and the boring arms 24 will be taken by the rear tilting shoes 67, said shoes transmitting the thrusts into the frame 21 through the medium of the standard 64 and the thrust plate 71.

The provision of the tilting shoes 62 which bear against the pusher posts 61 enables the gear case and the head to be tilted in a vertical plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the machine 20 by selective operation of the cylinders 37 and the pistons 38 therein. Such selective operation of the cylinders 37 may be that as described in an application of Carl A. Wilms. Serial No. 391,493, filed November 12, 1953, for Improvements in Mining Machines, owned by the assignee of the present invention, and it will be noted that even upon such tilting movement of the gear housing 23 no strains will be placed upon the lifting cylinders 37 other than the straight axial loads.

Any twisting of the gear housing 23 in a horizontal plane is accommodated by thrusting action against a front tilting shoe 68 such as seen in Fig. 5 and the rear tilting shoe 67 at the opposite pusher post 61. In spite of such s tewing in a horizontal plane, the lifting pistons 38 will be unaccompanied by any strains tending to bind same within the cylinder 37.

The aforesaid thrusts against the tilting shoes 62, 67 and 68 are in the main taken thereby, and the pusher posts 61, 61 may be considered as fulcrum points for movement of the gear housing 23.

It will be noted that the tilting movement of the tilting shoes 62, 67 and 68 will be varied in accordance with the angle of tilt of the gear housing 23 by the action of the tilting cylinders 53. As has been previously described the tilting cylinders 53 are so mounted that substantially no strain is placed on the piston rod 52 thereof excepting that of straight compression since the spherical end 54 and the gimbal mounting 57 will permit shifting of the cylinders 53 in accordance with any twisting in a horizontal '5 plane. Anylate'ral thrusts at the connection point 48 of the tilting cylinders 53, which lateral thrusts are greatly less than any lateral thrusts at the pusher posts 61, will be taken by the back guide posts 81 at the annular guide 83, the guide posts 81 at all times having line contact with the annular guide ring 83.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that the lifting and tilting movement ofthe gear housing 23 and the boring arms 24 will be unaccompanied by any twisting strains upon such lifting means, any thrusts tending to impose twisting strains upon the lifting and tilting means being taken by the pusher posts 61 and the tilting thrust taking shoes, any lateral thrusts at the arms 47 being taken by the rear guide posts 81 and the toroidal shaped guide ring 83.

While the invention has been described in terms of a preferred embodiment thereof, its scope is not intended to be limited by the precise embodiment herein shown and described, nor otherwise than by the terms of the claims here appended.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a continuous miner of the type comprising a boring head having a pair of boring arms for cutting a pair of contiguous bores in a seam of coal or the like, a main frame, fluid pressure means for raising and lowering said boring head with respect to said main frame, a connection between said fluid pressure means and said main frame, said connection being characterized by being able to transmit axial loads only into said fluid pressure means, means on said boring head for taking the lateral and longitudinal thrusts thereagainst and transmitting same into said main frame, at least one tilting arm extending from said boring head and having fluid pressure means interposed therebetween and said main frame for tilting said boring head, and means for limiting the movement of said tilting arm in a horizontal plane comprising a cylindrical guide post extending downward from said tilting arm, a cylindrical guide disposed on said frame and having the guide post extending therein, the axis of the guide post being displaced from the axis of the guide and the dimension of said guide being so chosen that the guide post has line contact with said guide in limiting the movement of said boring head.

2. In a continuous miner of the type comprising a boring head having a pair of boring arms for cutting a pair of contiguous bores in a seam of coal or the like, a main frame, a pair of lifting cylinders for raising and lowering said boring head with respect to said main frame, means for connecting each of said lifting cylinders with said main frame, said connecting means being characterized by the transfer of axial strains only into said lifting cylinders; means for selectively operating said lifting cylinders so as to cause said boring head to tilt in a plane parallel to the plane of said boring arms, and means for taking the lateral and longitudinal thrusts against said boring head comprising a pair of pusher posts extending downward from said boring head, a thrust receiving member cooperating with each pusher post and mounted on said main frame, and thrust receiving shoes mounted on said members and arranged to tilt in accordance with the tilt of said boring head so as to transmit thrust from said pusher posts into said main frame.

3. In a continuous miner of the type comprising a boring head having a pair of boring arms for cutting a pair of contiguous bores in a seam of coal or the like, a main frame, fluid pressure means for raising and lowering said boring head with respect to said main frame, means for connecting each of said lifting cylinders with said main frame, said connecting means being characterized by the transfer of axial strains only into said fluid pressure means, means for selectively operating said lifting cylinders so as to cause said boring head to tilt in a plane parallel to the plane of said boring arms, and means for taking the lateral and longitudinal thrusts against said boring head comprising a pusher post extending downward from said boring head, a thrust receiving member disposed on said main frame and cooperating with said pusher post, and thrust receiving shoes mounted on said member and arranged to tilt in accordance with the tilt of said boring head so as to transmit thrust from said pusher post into said main frame.

4. In a continuous miner of the type comprising a boring head having a pair of boring arms for cutting a pair of contiguous bores in a seam of coal or the like, a main frame, a pair of lifting cylinders for raising and lowering said boring head with respect to said main frame, means for connecting each of said lifting cylinders with said main frame, said connecting means being characterized by the transfer of axial strains only into said lifting cylinders; means for selectively operating said lifting cylinders so as to cause said boring head to tilt in a plane parallel to the plane of said boring arms, means for taking the lateral and longitudinal thrusts against said boring head comprising a pusher post extending downward from said boring head, a thrust receiving member disposed on said main frame and cooperating with said pusher post, thrust receiving shoes mounted on said member and arranged to tilt in acordance with the tilt of said boring head so as to transmit thrust from said pusher post into said main frame, at least one tilting arm extending from said boring head and having fluid pressure means interposed therebetween and said main frame for tilting said boring head in a plane normal to the aforesaid plane, and means for limiting the movement of said tilting arm in a horizontal plane comprising a cylindrical guide post extending downward from said tilting arm, a cylindrical guide disposed on said frame and having the guide post extending therein, the axis of the guide post being displaced from the axis of the guide, and the dimension of said guide being so chosen that the guide post has line contact with said guide in limiting the movement of said boring head.

5. In a continuous miner of the type comprising a boring head having a pair of boring arms for cutting a pair of contiguous bores in a seam of coal or the like, a main frame, a pair of lifting cylinders for raising and lowering said boring head with respect to said main frame, means for connecting each of said lifting cylinders with said main frame, said connecting means being characterized by the transfer of axial strains only into said lifting cylinders; means for selectively operating said lifting cylinders so as to cause said boring head to tilt in a plane parallel to the plane of said boring arms, means for taking the lateral and longitudinal thrusts against said boring head comprising a pusher post extending downward from said boring head, a thrust receiving member disposed on said main frame and cooperating with said pusher post, thrust receiving shoes mounted on said member and arranged to tilt in accordance with the tilt of said boring head so as to transmit thrust from said pusher post into said main frame, at least one tilting arm extending from said boring head and having fluid pressure means interposed therebetween and said main frame for tilting said boring head in a plane normal to the aforesaid plane, and means for limiting the movement of said tilting arm in a horizontal plane comprising a guide post extending downward from said tilting arm, a cylindrical guide disposed on said main frame and cooperating with said guide post, said cylindrical guide having its axis eccentric of the axis of said guide post.

6. In a continuous miner of the type comprising a boring head having a pair of boring arms for cutting a pair of contiguous bores in a seam of coal or the like, a main frame, fluid pressure means for raising and lowering said boring head with respect to said main frame, a connection between said fluid pressure means and said main frame, said connection being characterized by being able to transmit axial loads only into said fluid pressure means, means on said boring head for taking the lateral and longitudinal thrusts thereagainst and transmitting same into said main frame, at least one tilting arm extending from said boring head and having fluid pressure means interposed therebetween and said main frame for tilting said boring head, and means for limiting the movement of said tilting arm in a horizontal plane comprising a guide post extending downward from said tilting arm, a cylindrical guide disposed on said main frame and cooperating with said guide post, said cylindrical guide having its vertical axis eccentric of the axis of said guide post.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS France May 9, 

